HOMEMADE CRISPY POTATO CHIPS

 

 

 

I'm addicted to the crunchy,irresistible taste of store-bought chips. I always wondered as to what contributed to the uniform crispy texture of the chips, purchased from the markets.After googling various hacks, I decided to prepare potato chips at home. Viola ! the the chips turned out be perfectly crispy. I learned some important pointers,which were really helpful in getting the desired results.Selection of Potato variant is key for the crispiness- Potato should be large and firm.Immersing the slices in ice water,is key for crispy texture. Rinsing the slices in ice cold water,eliminates the starch content completely. I followed every nuance and was elated with the outcome. Thenceforth,I will prepare my favorite chips at home and eat it too!.

 

INGREDIENTS :

POTATOES (  LARGE VARIANT )

OIL FOR FRYING

ICE COLD WATER

SALT - AS REQUIRED

PROCEDURE :

1. Wash ,wipe and peel the skin of potatoes.

2. Take a chips cutter and rub the peeled potato to make thin slices.

 

3. Transfer the slices to the container with ice cold water and immerse it for 20 minutes.

4. After twenty minutes,take the slices from the water and rinse it thoroughly with fresh ice water to get rid of starch content.

5. Spread the cleaned slices on a clean cotton cloth to get rid of excess moisture content .

6. Heat oil in a pan and when it is hot enough,drop the slices gently. Always maintain medium heat,else the chips will turn brown and over cooked.

7. Fry till the chips turn crisp and colour changes to  golden. Don't spread the fried chips on a tissue cloth.

 

8.Allow it to cool for a couple of minutes,sprinkle salt and chilli powder and store it in airtight container.   

LEFTOVER RICE FRYUMS

 

                          

 

 

                                 

 

 

Sun-dried fryums are one of the effective methods of rehashing leftover rice productively. Sizzling summer temperature is the perfect season for preparing fryums. This rice fryums is called as killu vadam in Tamil,as the batter is shaped from small pinches.You can even incorporate chopped raw onions or ground paste of onions along with green chillies in the batter. I dislike the onion flavour in the vadams,because at times,it induces bitter taste when deep fried.

 

 

 

 

 INGREDIENTS :

COOKED RICE-  2 CUPS

SALT- AS REQUIRED

CHILLI POWDER- 1 TSP

CUMIN SEEDS- 1 TSP

PROCEDURE :

1. Soak the left over rice in water for 2-3 hours. This is done to soften the rice. Leftover cooked rice tend to become hard. 

2. After 3 hours, drain the water. Take the softened rice in a mixer jar.

3. Add chilli powder,salt and blend in a mixer jar without water. 

4. Transfer the ground paste a wide vessel and mix with cumin seeds.

5. Pinch small portion of the batter and spread on a clean sheet or plate and sun dry it ,till the moisture content evaporates completely.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LEFTOVER RICE PONGAL

                      

                                     

Pongal is one of the healthy breakfast options in the South Indian cuisine. Besides the taste, the gooey consistency is also vital for a perfect pongal. The pongal I prepared from the left over rice was certainly on par with the one prepared using fresh  rice.I normally don't add turmeric powder,but to make this rehash dish more inviting,i used it this time. You can adjust the measurement of water,according to the rice variants. If the cooked rice is little hard,then you can add more amount of water.

 INGREDIENTS :

COOKED RICE-  2 CUPS

WATER- 3 1/2 CUPS

MOONG DAL- 3/4 CUP

SALT TO TASTE

TURMERIC POWDER- 1/4 TSP

FOR TEMPERING :

OIL- 3 TSP

GHEE - 3 TSP

CUMIN SEEDS- 1 TSP

PEPPERCORNS- 3/4 TSP

ASAFOETIDA- 3/4 TSP

CURRY LEAVES- 2 SPRIGS

CASHEWNUTS- AS REQUIRED

GINGER GRATED- 1 TSP

PROCEDURE :

1. Transfer 2 cups of left over rice to a pressure cooker. Add 3 1/2 cups of water along with salt.

2. Dry roast moong dal till nice aroma emanates. Switch off the stove and transfer the roasted lentils to the cooker in which rice is placed.

3. Add half the quantity of ginger grating,asafoetida and cumin seeds to the rice. You can use the remaining quantity of these ingredients while tempering. This method enhances the flavour of pongal.

4.Now close the pressure cooker lid and cook for 4 whistles and switch off. 

5. Prepare the seasoning from the ingredients cited in the column and pour it over hot pongal and mix it well.

LEFTOVER RICE ROTI

                           

                                      

              

               

I always prefer  perfect fluffy rice. But due to some issues with the gasket,I ended up with lot of cooked mushy rice. It was neither palatable nor appetizing. Hence, I decided to convert it into rehash dishes. The go-to dish that comes to my mind is sandige or fryums. I reserved a portion of cooked rice for preparing fryums and preserved the remaining for preparing pongal and rotis. I will be posting the recipes of other two recipes soon. The roti was indeed soft,crispy and the flavour was akin to akki roti.

INGREDIENTS :

 

COOKED RICE-  2 CUPS

RICE FLOUR- 2 TBSP

WHEAT FLOUR- 1 TBSP

GINGER GREEN CHILLI PASTE- 1 TSP

CUMIN SEEDS- 1 TSP

FENNEL POWDER- 1TSP

SALT TO TASTE

PROCEDURE :

1. In a mixer jar,transfer the left over rice,along with salt, wheat flour and rice flour and run it for minute and stop in between and then run the mixie. This method ensures that that the mixer jar doesn't get stuck.

2. Don't add water,else the batter will turn watery.

3. Transfer the ground paste to a vessel and add ginger green chilli paste,cumin seeds,fennel powder and mix well.

4. If you find the batter is loose,then dust some more flour to make it firm.

5. Divide the dough into equal size balls and keep it aside.

6. Apply oil on the griddle and flatten the ball and spread it till its thin . Take care not to tear it. 

7. Now heat the griddle and drizzle oil on the surface and sides  

8.Heat till brown spots appear on the surface. Flip it to other side and cook till the rotis turn crisp.

 

9. While preparing the second roti,you can flatten the rotis on a greased banana leaf or butter paper and transfer the same to a hot griddle. 

 

KAIRICHI DAL

                          

Kairichi dal is a traditional salad from the Maharashtrian cuisine. Kairichi or Ambe means raw mango and it is mainly prepared during chaitra month as an offering to goddess Parvati,to invoke her and seek her blessings.When I tasted this dish,I could draw similarity between this dal and Kosambari,from my cuisine. Both the dishes are soaked lentil based preparations with slight variation. In Kosambari,  soaked whole lentils is used,where as in this preparation, it is coarsely ground. Anyways,I thoroughly enjoyed kairichi dal with plain rice.

 

 

INGREDIENTS :

BENGAL GRAM DAL-  3 TBSP

RAW MANGO GRATINGS- 3 TBSP

COCONUT GRATINGS- 11/2 TBSP

SALT TO TASTE

GREEN CHILLIES- 2 

GINGER- 1/2 inch

SUGAR- 1 TSP

FOR TEMPERING :

 

OIL- 3 TSP

MUSTARD- 3/4 TSP

CUMIN SEEDS- 3/4 TSP

CURRY LEAVES- 2 SPRIGS

RED CHILLIES- 2

ASAFOETIDA- 1/2 TSP

TURMERIC POWDER- 1/4 TSP

PROCEDURE :

1. Wash and soak bengal gram dal in water for 3-4 hours. After it has softened,drain the water completely. 

2. In a mixer jar,take soaked gram dal,ginger pieces and chopped green chillies and grind to coarse paste.

3. Transfer the ground paste to a wide container. Add coconut gratings, mango gratings,salt and sugar and mix well.

4. Prepare the seasoning with the ingredients cited in the column.

 

5. Pour the seasoning over the paste and mix well and serve.  

6. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

BOTTLE GOURD TIKKI

                                          
             

                                        

Tikki is mostly a shallow-fried snack prepared with one or combination of veggies. I mostly prefer the aloo or potato tikki. With bottle gourd on hand,I tried this tikki this time. Bottle gourd is a bland veggie and tastes like cucumber. This nutritious veggie blends well in any kind of preparation.

INGREDIENTS :

BOTTLE GOURD GRATINGS- 1 1/2 CUPS

GRAM FLOUR- 3 TBSP

RICE FLOUR- 1 1/2 TBSP 

GARAM MASALA POWDER- 1 TSP

CHILLI POWDER- 1/2 TSP

AAMCHUR POWDER- 1/2 TSP

SALT TO TASTE

 GROUNDNUTS ( coarsely pounded)- 1 TBSP

PROCEDURE :

 1. Wash,wipe and peel bottle gourd and take out the seed portion. Squeeze the water completely from the gratings.

2. In a wide vessel, transfer the gratings along with gram flour,rice flour and all above cited ingredients.

 

3.Roast groundnuts and grind to a coarse powder in a mixer jar.

 

4. Combine all the ingredients to a dough consistency. If the dough is loose,then you sprinkle flour and make it firm.

5. Pinch out the dough and divide it into equal size balls. Flatten the same on your palm and arrange it on a plate.

6. Pour some oil on the griddle and heat it. Place the patties gently on the hot griddle and keep the flame in medium.

7. Drizzle oil on the surface and sides of the patties and flip it to other side. Fry till golden brown in colour.